Egypt says it will halt raids on NGOs

Egyptian authorities say they've agreed to return all equipment and documents seized during a series of raids this week on non-governmental organizations. Egypt's military government told U.S. Ambassador to Egypt Anne Patterson it would end the raids on NGOs, CNN reported Friday. Egyptian police raided the offices of 10 non-governmental organizations across the country Thursday, offering no clear explanation for the actions. Police seized laptops and desktop computers, video conferencing equipment, cellphones and 15 to 20 boxes of documents in a raid on the offices of the National Democratic Institute. "We asked them if there was something specific we could help them find," Julie Hughes, Egypt country director for NDI, told CNN. "They refused to answer." Adel Saeed, spokesman for the Egyptian general prosecutor's office, said the raids were in support of an investigation into allegations that NGOs may have received illegal foreign funding and have been operating without licenses from the Foreign Ministry. The explanation did not satisfy leaders of organizations based in the United States, CNN said. "I don't know that we fully understand what is behind this," Hughes said.